Many fixed and mobile structures are provided with one or more hoses that serve as conduits for air and other gases that are either exhausted from or vented into a particular space or compartment. As represented diagrammatically by FIG. 1, often a hose 10 is coupled to a structural element such as a wall or panel 12 so as to be mated with an opening 14 formed in the panel. For example, watercraft are often provided with a hose 10 through which gases from the engine compartment are vented to the outside and a second hose 10 through which cooking odor-laden gases are vented from the galley. In a watercraft, the hoses 10 are coupled to openings 14 formed in the hull or other structural member above the craft's water line. Thus, dangerous and unpleasant gases generated in these compartments can be vented away from the craft's occupied spaces.
Typically, a fitting such as the fitting 16 illustrated in FIG. 1A, is used to hold a hose 10 in position around the panel opening 14. Fitting 16 includes an elongated sleeve-shaped central body 18 that extends through the panel opening 14 and into an interior space. Fitting 16 further includes a flat annular flange 20 located around the outer edge of body 18. Threaded fasteners 22 extend through openings formed in the fitting flange 20 and complimentary bores 23 in the panel 14 so as to hold the fitting in place. In many fittings, the stem ends of the fasteners are fitted through an annular ring 26 located around the fitting body 18 adjacent the inside surface of the panel 12. When the threaded fasteners 22 are locked in place, the fitting flange 20 and ring 26 cooperate to compression secure fitting in the port 14. The hose 10 is secured around the inside, open end of the fitting body 18. In the depicted version of the invention, a hose clamp 28 is used to hold the hose in place.
Fittings currently employed to secure a hose to a complementary port have proved sufficient for their purpose. However, a disadvantage of many current fittings is that they are difficult to install. For example, in order to install the fitting 16 depicted in FIG. 1A it is necessary to not only remove a section of the panel 12 in order to form the port 14, it is also necessary to form the bores 23 in the panel for the threaded fasteners. Moreover, many times the act of securing the ring 26 around the fitting body 18 has proved to be a two person job; one person is needed to hold the threaded fasteners so they project into the interior space, while the second person fits the ring over the fasteners and secures the fasteners in place. Moreover, as can be seen by this FIG. 1A, these fixtures require numerous fasteners and a hose clamp. Accordingly, while currently available hose fittings provide an excellent job of securing the hoses which they are associated in place, they have proved to be both relatively expensive to provide and require a significant amount of labor in order to install.